Grand Casino Arena Game Day Guide
Minnesota Wild · Saint Paul, MN
Know Before You Go
- Bag policy
Purses up to 12 x 12 x 6 inches are permitted at designated X-ray entrances; wristlets, clutches, and wallets up to 4 x 6 x 1.5 inches are permitted at every entrance after inspection.
The purse rule includes clear bags; backpacks, coolers, and large totes are prohibited, while medical and parenting bags are permitted after X-ray screening.
- Gate opening
General doors open 75 minutes before Minnesota Wild games.
Gate 5 opens 90 minutes early for listed premium areas, and Gate 4 opens 90 minutes early for Fan Zone access only.
- Mobile tickets
Minnesota Wild home games use mobile-only entry through the Minnesota Wild App and its SeatGeek integration.
Display each ticket's QR code at the entrance; screenshots are not accepted.
- Re-entry
Grand Casino Arena does not permit guests to exit during an event and then re-enter.
- Prohibited items
Prohibited items include weapons and defensive sprays, detachable-lens cameras, outside food and beverages, cans and glass bottles, coolers, noisemakers and inflatables, selfie sticks, lasers, pets other than service animals, hockey sticks and poles, recording devices, disguise masks, large or sharp umbrellas, wrapped gifts, and knitting or crochet equipment.
Tablets are an exception for Minnesota Wild games even though they are prohibited at other arena events.
- First aid
The Regions Hospital First Aid Station is on the 100 Level at Sections 104 and 105, next to Guest Services.
Contact any arena staff member for assistance.
- Guest services
Guest Services desks are at Sections 104 and 105 on the 100 Level, Section C9 on the Club Level, and Section 207 on the 200 Level.
During an event, text 651-800-9453 for wayfinding, fan-conduct, or other immediate assistance.
- Service animals
Trained service animals are permitted and must remain leashed or harnessed in the handler's seating area.
A service animal may not use another seat unless a ticket was purchased for that adjacent seat.
- Smoking and vaping
Smoking, tobacco, electronic cigarettes, vaporizers, and similar products are prohibited inside Grand Casino Arena.
The arena's no-reentry policy means guests cannot leave to smoke and return.
Game Day Timeline
What the day looks like at Grand Casino Arena, hour by hour.
Lowertown pregame
Head to Lowertown for craft beer at one of St. Paul's excellent breweries. The neighborhood is a short walk from the arena.
Rice Park area
The restaurants around Rice Park and along 7th Street offer good pregame dining within skyway distance of the Xcel.
Doors open
Enter the Xcel and watch warm-ups. The building has one of the best atmospheres in the NHL, Minnesota fans are hockey literate.
Find your seat
Settle in. The crowd buzzes with anticipation, Wild games are an event in the State of Hockey.
Game time
Three 20-minute periods. Wild fans are loud, knowledgeable, and react to offsides and icing calls. This is a hockey crowd.
Hit the concourse
Grab a Juicy Lucy or walleye fingers with a Surly Furious IPA. Minnesota food and beer at their best.
Lowertown nightlife
Walk to Lowertown for post-game pints at one of St. Paul's craft breweries. Or take the skyway back to your car and hit the road.
Tips & Fan Reports
Metro Green Line connects to Minneapolis (Target Center / Target Field area) if you're staying across the river.
Minnesota is the State of Hockey. These fans grew up playing. They know the game better than almost any fan base in the NHL.
The Grand Casino Arena is widely considered one of the best atmospheres in the NHL. The State of Hockey is real.
The Grand Casino Arena is consistently ranked as one of the best arenas in the NHL for atmosphere. It lives up to the hype.
St. Paul's downtown is compact and walkable. Many restaurants and bars are within 5 minutes of the arena.
St. Paul's skyway system connects the parking ramps to the arena. You can walk from your car to your seat without stepping outside in January.
Both the RiverCentre and Kellogg ramps connect directly to the arena complex.
Backpacks, coolers and large totes are refused outright; a purse up to 12 by 12 by 6 gets in at a designated X-ray point, and a wallet or clutch up to 4 by 6 by 1.5 at any entrance.
The Kellogg ramp is underground with a 7 foot clearance; the arena publishes no clearance for the RiverCentre ramp.
Suite and club members get in through Gate 5 fifteen minutes before the general doors, and Gate 4 opens at the same time for the Fan Zone.
Before the Game
Grand Casino Arena is on the corner of West Kellogg Boulevard and West 7th Street in downtown Saint Paul, between Interstate 94 and 35E, and publishes no tailgating policy. Two parking ramps, RiverCentre and Kellogg, are directly connected to the complex. Doors open 75 minutes before a Wild game; Gate 5 opens 90 minutes ahead for the Old National Bank Suite Level, RBC Wealth Management Club Level, Bud Light Top Shelf Lounge and Custom One On-The-Glass Club, and Gate 4 opens 90 minutes ahead for the Fan Zone only. Purses up to 12 by 12 by 6 inches, clear bags included, are allowed at designated X-ray entry points and wristlets, clutches or wallets up to 4 by 6 by 1.5 inches at every entrance; backpacks, coolers and large totes are prohibited.
Where to Go Before the Game
RiverCentre Parking Ramp, 150 West Kellogg Boulevard
One of the two ramps the arena names as its most convenient, directly connected to the arena complex. It reads license plates, so there is no ticket to keep, and payment is by the parking app, a QR code posted in the ramp, or a pay station.
Known for Directly connected · License plate entry · App, QR code or pay station
Kellogg Parking Ramp, 129 West Kellogg Boulevard
An underground ramp on the north side of Kellogg Boulevard West between North Washington Street and 7th Street West, beneath Saint Paul RiverCentre and directly connected to the arena complex. Vehicles must clear 7 feet.
Known for Underground · Directly connected · 7 ft clearance
West Kellogg Boulevard and West 7th Street
The downtown Saint Paul corner the arena occupies, between Interstate 94 and 35E. Every driving route the Wild publish, from the north, east, west and MSP Airport, ends on Kellogg Boulevard.
Known for Downtown Saint Paul · Between I-94 and 35E
Gate 5, for suite and club members
Opens 90 minutes before game time for the Old National Bank Suite Level, RBC Wealth Management Club Level, Bud Light Top Shelf Lounge and Custom One On-The-Glass Club, 15 minutes ahead of the general doors.
Known for Opens 90 min before · Suite and club members · 15 min early
Gate 4, for the Fan Zone
Opens 90 minutes before game time for the Fan Zone only. It is at the arena's northeast corner on 5th Street, near Section 120, and is also the official ride share pick-up and drop-off point.
Known for Opens 90 min before · Fan Zone only · 5th Street
Pregame Rules
What Grand Casino Arena allows before the game, and what it does not.
- Guests are strongly discouraged from bringing bags of any kind. Purses no larger than 12" x 12" x 6" are allowed at designated X-ray entry points, and this applies to clear bags too.
- Wristlets, clutches or wallets 4" x 6" x 1.5" or smaller are allowed at all entrances, subject to inspection.
- Backpacks, coolers and large totes are prohibited. Medical and parenting bags are permitted, subject to X-ray screening.
- Doors open 75 minutes prior to game time.
- Gate 5 opens 90 minutes prior to game time for the Old National Bank Suite Level, RBC Wealth Management Club Level, Bud Light Top Shelf Lounge and Custom One On-The-Glass Club. Gate 4 opens 90 minutes prior for the Fan Zone only.
- The arena is on the corner of West Kellogg Boulevard and West 7th Street in downtown Saint Paul, between Interstate 94 and 35E.
- Two parking ramps, RiverCentre and Kellogg, are directly connected to the complex.
Weather
Grand Casino Arena is indoor, so these are the conditions for the parking lot and the walk in, not the seats.
Across the NHL season the warmest month is October, with an average high of 58°F, and the coldest is January, when the average low is 9°F. April is the wettest month at 2.6 inches and January the driest at 0.5 inches.
That January low ranks 4th coldest of the 32 NHL venues, and April here ranks 25th wettest.
October
2.5 inchesNovember
1.3 inchesJanuary
0.5 inchesMarch
1.4 inchesApril
2.6 inchesWhat to Bring
- Only the outside food and drink the rule allows
Outside food and beverages are prohibited, but an empty plastic reusable water bottle up to 32 ounces is permitted after inspection.
- A card or a phone wallet
Concessions, retail, parking, and box-office transactions accept only credit cards and mobile payments such as Apple Pay and Google Pay.
- A coat for the walk in
January lows average 9°F between the lot and the door at Grand Casino Arena.
How We Checked This Page
Every section below names the source it was read from and the day it was read. Where we could not reach a published figure, the page says so rather than presenting an estimate as a checked fact.
- Game day timeline
Gate opening time checked against the venue's own gate-opening policy: General doors open 75 minutes before Minnesota Wild games.
- Pregame
Minnesota Wild game day guide on nhl.com, with the Wild's getting to the game page and Grand Casino Arena's directions and parking page
- Weather
NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals
- Venue policies
Grand Casino Arena venue-policies and accessibility pages, and its special-diet menu, read 2026-09-23 after the arena's site moved its visitor and accessibility guides; alcohol cutoff, children's tickets, family-restroom and Mother's Room details are no longer published and were removed.